Meghan Gerard and Ellis Rosen shared a fourth-floor walk-up in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn. It had a narrow railroad layout, with balky heat and finicky windows. Ms. Gerard had a 50-minute subway trip, with a bad transfer, to her job in Manhattan as a hospital administrator at N.Y.U. Langone Health. Mr. Rosen, a cartoonist and illustrator, works from home.

After the couple, who married two years ago, decided they wanted an upgrade, the debate went on for months: Rent or buy?

“We asked everyone we knew, and we Googled,” Ms. Gerard said. “The more information we got, the more undecided we were.”

But the couple, both 32, were inclined toward buying. Through a chain of acquaintances, they met Thomas Rozboril, a licensed salesperson at Compass. They were interested in a dog-friendly two-bedroom that was within reasonable commuting distance for Ms. Gerard and had a good work-from-home setup for Mr. Rosen. “You can go places and sketch, but that’s not as appealing to me,” he said.

Initially, the neighborhood wasn’t important to them. It was more about location: Some neighborhoods were too far into Brooklyn, meaning a longer commute, few train options and an almost suburban feel.

“I realized how nice it was to walk down the street to a coffee shop and have proximity to things we care about — work, friends, family and general conveniences,” Ms. Gerard said. “We became more particular about what things matter to us more.”

Image

The new apartment is around 900 square feet, with plenty of closet space and a large, open kitchen facing the living room. CreditKatherine Marks for The New York Times

Their price range, about $600,000 to $750,000, might be a challenge if they wanted a real second bedroom, Mr. Rozboril told them.

Near the Brooklyn Museum in Prospect Heights, a large and lovely two-bedroom co-op unit was asking $789,000, with maintenance in the high $700s. A nearby construction zone on the former site of a Key Food roared outside. The apartment was on the ground floor, and the new building replacing the supermarket would likely have blocked much of the sunlight.

“Construction was literally outside the window of every single room except for the kitchen, which looked out on a brick wall,” Mr. Rozboril said.

Mr. Rosen, who grew up near the Holland Tunnel, didn’t think the noise would bother him, but the dim light would. “This was the first one where there were so many more pros than cons, but there was one big con,” Ms. Gerard said. It soon sold for $850,000.

In Park Slope, a beautifully renovated two-bedroom in a small condominium building on a lovely tree-lined block was asking $699,000, with monthly charges in the low $600s.

Image

A large two-bedroom in a Prospect Heights co-op was on the ground floor and near a construction site.CreditKatherine Marks for The New York Times

The couple were number 36 on the open-house sign-in sheet. If one bedroom was small, the other was tiny. Closet space was minimal. The kitchen included a combination washer-dryer rather than a dishwasher, which they found weird. The home wasn’t suitable for them; it quickly sold for $809,000.

In Concord Village, the seven-building co-op complex, circa 1950, near the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge, Ms. Gerard and Mr. Rosen were intrigued by a corner two-bedroom with around 900 square feet, plenty of closet space and a large, open kitchen. The asking price was $799,000, with maintenance of around $1,100 plus assorted amenity fees.

“I knew immediately where I wanted to put my office,” Mr. Rosen said. With quick access to multiple subway lines, it was easy to get anywhere. The bedrooms came outfitted with soundproof windows, which reduced the traffic noise from outside.

Ms. Gerard discussed the situation with colleagues, one of whom lived in the complex. “There were all these people in our lives who had lived in Concord Village and had good things to say,” she said. “Hearing it from people who live there, it was so wonderful.”

The unit they were interested in had been on the market for months, and had already had one price drop. The sellers had long since departed for California. The couple held firm to their offer and bought the place for $720,000.

Image

A beautifully renovated two-bedroom in a Park Slope townhouse had small bedrooms, minimal closet space and a washer-dryer in the kitchen.CreditKatherine Marks for The New York Times

But there was still money to be spent. The inspector noted that there were not enough circuit breakers. “It seemed like an easily fixable problem,” Ms. Gerard said. But every time the electrician came, he found something else wrong.

“The electrician was a bearer of bad news for, like, six weeks,” Ms. Gerard said, to the tune of about $12,000. Apparently, some previous owner had improperly installed overhead lights.

The couple finally arrived in the spring, with Crusher the dog in tow. Mr. Rosen arranged his desk in a corner, near two windows. Their new home, he said, represents “a huge life upgrade.”

Their floor has a trash chute and recycling area. There is a laundry room in the basement. “Something about not having to go out for the laundry makes my life so much easier,” he said. “All these little amenities, I love them. They make it great.”

Packages are announced with computerized notifications. “In the old place, you would hear the door buzzer so loud it would freak me out,” Mr. Rosen said. “When I walk the dog and come back, there’s a screen in the lobby. I like that a ton better than being interrupted periodically during the day.”

Ms. Gerard enjoys a shorter and easier trip to work, with no transfers.

Image

“When I describe it to others, I say it’s the ugly building near the bridge,” Ms. Gerard said of the couple’s new home. “I really liked living on smaller streets that were quiet, but it has so many conveniences, it became easy for me to overlook that.”CreditKatherine Marks for The New York Times

“We are on the wait list for everything,” she said. “We are on a five-year wait list for a parking spot, a three-year wait list for a storage locker and a one-year wait list for bike storage.” For now, they store their bicycles in the master bedroom, which is so big it begs for more furniture.

“When I describe it to others, I say it’s the ugly building near the bridge,” Ms. Gerard said. “I never imagined myself living near a busy highway. I really liked living on smaller streets that were quiet, but it has so many conveniences, it became easy for me to overlook that. I was expecting what I wouldn’t like, and it turned out not to matter to me.”